


Ripples in Time (Timeline 40 Redux)

by SimplyAlexei



Series: Plums & Peaches (Timeline 40 Redux) [2]
Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:00:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25960954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SimplyAlexei/pseuds/SimplyAlexei
Summary: clair·voy·ance/ˌklerˈvoiəns/nounthe supposed faculty of perceiving things or events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact.-A series of vignettes looking at Arielle's visions from the perspectives of other characters. Companion piece to "Plums & Peaches" with major spoiler warnings in effect.
Series: Plums & Peaches (Timeline 40 Redux) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1734253
Kudos: 2





	1. "Eliot"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene corresponds with Chapter 1 of Plums & Peaches

Eliot Waugh was nothing if not a spectacular party host. He didn't gain his reputation as such by slinging cheap beer and letting wallflowers plant their roots, so when we spotted a tiny redhead settling in to build her own garden his good conscience could not allow him to ignore it. He prepped one of the more popular drinks of the evening, shooing away anyone who dared approach while he was on his mission to pull out the weeds.

The girl hadn't moved in the time it took for him to add the final garnish. Instead she stared out the window like it held the key to the secrets of the universe. No matter. Soon she'd find that the parties on earth would be a better distraction. He offered her the drink with a practiced flourish, bringing her attention back down to this planet.

In his experience, an interrupted wallflower's reaction tended to lean towards one of two major directions. The first was shy embarrassment - they wanted to join in on the festivities but were too introverted or self conscious to initiate. The second was aggressive independence - they wanted to join in on the festivities but didn't want to break their cool personas or seem to eager by initiating. Somehow, this small woman managed to channel both and neither at once. She seemed like she was genuinely confused about how she ended up there. More than likely she was contemplating leaving even though she'd likely just arrived.

Of course he couldn't let that happen so he made a snap choice and began pulling her towards the bar with the intention of a custom drink that she'd want to stay just to have more of.

"Eliot"

Any why did she have to go and say his name like that out of nowhere? The same way that Margo said it at three in the morning when nobody else was around and she didn't have to hide her affection behind hard glossy armor. Like it was both a prayer and a praise.

The shock of hearing such familiarity come from a stranger was enough to send him reeling, even more so once he realized the rippling of her irises wasn't a metaphor, but a literal indication of her discipline. He would need to consult with Margo and have her keep eye on this new psychic Pet, just in case.

For now though, he'd ply her with drinks while Todd took it upon himself to keep her company.

Fucking Todd.


	2. "Don't Go to Ibiza"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene corresponds with Chapter 1 of Plums & Peaches

There was very little that impressed Margo Hanson. She was a woman used to clawing herself ahead in the game of life, a feat that others coo'd at and applauded as if she was some adorable child toddling around for their entertainment. Well, they were shit out of luck. Only one person was allowed to call her adorable and children were disgusting; that is to say that she'd worked her ass off to get where she was, and she saw no point in coddling people who put in half the effort but gave her only half the credit. So, when she came across the girl who'd left a distinctly uncomfortable impression on her best friend passed out on the couch with her face pressed against a throw pillow? She didn't see what the big deal was.

Margo stared, tapping her finger against her hip and contemplating how to eject the intruder. Most of the other students knew to get out before they passed out, because the morning-after hospitality was her duty. The other woman apparently didn't get the memo. She slowly came to, looking as pathetic and vulnerable as Cancer Puppy himself. Watching her drag herself into a seated position was almost entertaining until she mentioned a migraine. Margo wouldn't go so far as to say that she sympathized - sympathy was for weak little bitches - but she certainly was familiar with the condition and wanted to avoid kicking someone out just for them to pass out on the front lawn.

She grabbed one of the twenty or so ice packs shoved in the magically expanded freezer and tossed it over, basking in the quiet thanks she received before getting started on her other morning tasks. It wasn't long before the other woman looked less ready to keel over and thus more ready to kick out.

"Don't go to Ibiza"

If she hadn't been informed about the girl's discipline by El and just barely caught the weird eye thing he mentioned, she might have asked what the fuck gave the other woman the right to tell her what to do. As it was, it looked like Margo may need to come up with a few back up plans for break, just in case.


	3. The Beast Will Come From Fillory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene corresponds with Chapter 1 of Plums & Peaches

Quentin Coldwater didn't have many friends. Julia and James were the only two who really stuck around long enough to count, and even then once they got together the dynamic shifted. He was no longer friends with Julia and friends with James, he was friends with Julia and James. Being third wheel to the two most important people in his life wouldn't have been so bad if he wasn't a little bit in love with one and a lot in love with the other.

And now there was also Eliot, Margo being thrown in by association. He missed his other friends, sure, but being welcomed to Brakebills by the two made the transition easier. Maybe he was only ever meant to have two friends at a time.

Or not?

When a pretty woman called him out for humming Taylor Swift his gut instinct was to run far, run fast, and hope he never saw her again. Then he found himself coaxed into a conversation full of jokes and laughter - laughter that was shared with him rather than at him. He wasn't only allowed to contribute, he was encouraged to do so, to lead the flow of the conversation.

His other friends were all vivacious, with full and commanding presences that filled the room to the brim. They were multifaceted and complex people, of course, but more often than not they pulled him up to be with them rather than settling down to be with him. It was nice to talk to someone who didn't seem like they were fighting the urge to get up and move after five minutes.

She introduced herself as Arielle and took an immediate interest in his Fillory books after he admitted that we wasn't studying like she'd assumed. She asked questions, listened intently, and brushed her fingers across the covers to gently that it sent a shiver down his spine. It seemed like she might even be flirting with him a little, her chastising more playful than he was used to. He didn't want to assumed anything though, so he did his best to not dwell on it.

"The Beast will come from Fillory."

She said it as if to be an ominous warning, and after a moment of mutual confusion she reintroduced herself as Arielle, a clairvoyant psychic student.


	4. He's Going to Kill You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene corresponds with Chapter 1 of Plums & Peaches
> 
> SUPER DUPER SPOILER WARNING FOR THE PLUMS & PEACHES IN EFFECT

Eliza usually considered things not going to plan to be the least of her problems. She'd been playing with time for almost half a century, and if that'd taught her anything it was that cause and affect did not always follow through to the logical conclusions. So, waking up half way through a time loop with the memories of the rest of that same loop in her head? Not alarming in and of itself except for the fact that the rest of the loop cut off at her death.

She went to Henry seeking answers only to find him completely unaware of the development. His only memories of timeline 40 were the ones he'd already experienced, but already the phantom images in her head were different than the ones that she was acting out. Her best guess was that someone - after her death - began a new loop, only this one started part way through the one she'd already established: She was now like Henry, remembering things from a timeline that she had no part in resetting.

Frankly, the instability that this double loop might've caused would've be astronomical, and only a complete idiot would do something so reckless. They simultaneously were and were not in timeline 40, and if she reset her own loop there was no telling how this one one might interfere. There were too many branches already, and this exponentially increased the risk of them getting tangled. It was a horomancer's worst nightmare.

It was after another frustrating meeting with Henry that the first hint of an answer crossed her path.

"He's going to kill you."

Just a girl, a slight little thing who was barely a woman and could've passed for one of the many cousins from Eliza's youth. Her message was shocking enough, and the reality of Eliza's limited time to fix this mess hit her hard. The most curious thing though, the thing that she'd almost missed in her surprise, was the taste of Fillorian magic on her tongue. The earth pipes filtered it differently and while this girl may have been there long enough to absorb some of that flavor it wasn't enough to mask the long term exposure to the distinct magic of Fillory.

There was only one person from there powerful enough to pull off layered loops, and with a clairvoyant to guide that power?

Well, the answers to her questions were obvious now.


End file.
